Manchester City have had a mixed bag of results in their 2024/25 Champions League campaign.
In the first season with the brand-new format of the Champions League, City have played five of their eight matches in the group phase of the competition.
After drawing 0-0 against Inter Milan at the Etihad Stadium, the Blues then went on to secure comfortable victories against Slovan Bratislava and Sparta Prague.
They were then dealt a disappointing 4-1 defeat to Sporting CP before blowing a 3-0 lead to draw 3-3 with Feyenoord on Tuesday night.
City’s final three group games see Pep Guardiola’s side take on Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain away from home followed by a final home clash against Club Brugge.
With their mixed bag of results in mind, this could end up becoming a big problem for the Manchester club and Pep Guardiola in 2025 for a specific reason.
- Champions League 2024/25: New changes, league phase draw details, who Man City will face, full schedule
City’s Champions League form could cause a big problem in 2025
Even though City have three games left to play in the group stage of the tournament, their results so far have put them in 15th place in the table ahead of Wednesday’s round of fixtures.
In a nutshell, if City don’t end up in the top eight of the table after their three remaining group games, they’ll have to play two knockout matches in an effort to earn their place in the next round of the tournament.
These knockout games would be scheduled to be played in February home and away.
Not only does February see the Blues play their FA Cup fourth-round match, but it also sees them face off against some of the biggest sides in the Premier League.
Here’s a list of what City’s February fixture schedule could look like if they end up needing to play two Champions League knockout games.
- Feb 1 – Arsenal (a)
- Feb 8 – FA Cup fourth round
- Feb 11/12 – CL Playoff
- Feb 15 – Newcastle United (h)
- Feb 18/19 – CL Playoff
- Feb 22 – Liverpool (h)
- Feb 25 – Tottenham Hotspur (a)
City won’t want more fixtures to deal with
Back in September, Bernardo Silva dubbed City’s fixture schedule as “absurd” in terms of how many games the Blues could end up playing this season.
More recently, Ruben Dias discussed City’s fixtures, saying this on the matter earlier this month.
He said: “To perform better, it is necessary to ensure that athletes are safe, but few care about the athletes, but rather the financial aspect and profit.
“This season especially will be the craziest yet, with the Club World Cup at the end of the season.
“We have to think about the players if we want to put on a good show, giving ourselves enough time to recharge our batteries and put on the best show.
“In the past, we had a normal number of games. We are now well beyond that normal. We have to focus the issue on the athletes, as we are the ones who play.
“We realise the industry we have around us, but it’s our bodies that are in question. We need to rest and breathe. If it has to be, it is important that we are all together and do it together, like another extreme situation.
“If we have to raise our voice and go on strike, we will do so.”
Taking that on board, the prospect of having two Champions League knockout games to play in the middle of what is already a very busy and tough month in February would not be ideal for City and their players.
Therefore, this should act as extra motivation to secure victories in their final three group games and give themselves the best chance of finishing in the top eight.
